Summary Of Next Man Up

I chose the book Next Man Up by John Feinstein, because it is a book about football. This book is a journey into the secret world of the NFL. The author, John Feinstein, spins a year chronically the Baltimore Ravens football team. Usually, NFL teams do not let anyone into their secret world. They seem to be paranoid that there plays, play calling, and strategies will be stolen. Mr. Feinstein lives near the Baltimore area, and this is why he chose this team to chronicle. Mr. Feinstein has also been a lifelong NFL football fan. He grew up in New York City where the New York Giants played. He states it was hard to get to get to the Giants. He then became fan of the New York Giants who had Joe Namath as a quarterback at that time. He

This is just after the 2004 season for the Baltimore Ravens ended with a victory over the Miami Dolphins but with a 9- 7 record overall. This meant that Ravens would not be going to the playoffs. The offensive coordinator Matt Kavanagh and defensive assistant Phil Zacharias were both just fired. Other firings were also going to occur. This is where the NFL saying “Next Man Up” comes from. There are no jobs in the NFL that are safe from year to year, so the next man up for the job then comes along. John Feinstein actually followed the Baltimore Ravens during the 2004 football season. The next chapter begins with the beginning of that season (2004). The Baltimore Ravens had completed the 2003 season with a 10-6 record and an ironic playoff loss to the Tennessee Titans. The field goal kicker for the Titans with the same kicker who missed a field goal five years earlier when coach Billick coached him on the Minnesota Vikings during the NFC championship game which caused them to lose to the Atlanta Falcons. Coach Billick was then fired as offensive coordinator for the Vikings. Now, during the 2004 season the ravens had 3rd youngest roster in the

He wanted to play with Ray Lewis. During this year he scored his ninth touchdown from an interception. This interception and score moved him into second place for that statistical category. The book then proceeds to discuss each game and what happens with each game. The Ravens finished the season 9-7 without a playoff bid. That year their offense struggled. Thus, this lead to the eventual firings discussed in the beginning of this summary. The team as a whole had difficulty while several individual players had their own demons.
Characters
Steven Bisciotta: The majority owner of the Baltimore Ravens. This was his first year as majority owner.
Ozzie Newsome: General Manager of the Baltimore Ravens. He was in charge of the selection of all new players.
Brian Billick: The head coach of the Baltimore Ravens.
Jamal Lewis: Running back for the Baltimore Ravens. He was arrested for drug dealing during the off season in 2004.
Ray Lewis: Linebacker for the Baltimore Ravens. He was charged with murder in 2000, but later those charges were dropped.
Deion Sanders: Retired cornerback who came out of retirement to play with Ray Lewis.
Matt Cavanaugh: The offensive coordinator who was fired at the end of the